1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to hearing prostheses, and more particularly, to an acoustic coupler that interfaces with an external component of a hearing prosthesis.
2. Related Art
Hearing loss, which may be due to many different causes, is generally of two types, conductive and sensorineural. Conductive hearing loss occurs when the normal mechanical pathways for sound to reach the cochlea are impeded, for example, by damage to the ossicles. Individuals suffering from conductive hearing loss typically have some form of residual hearing because the cochlea is undamaged. As a result, individuals suffering from conductive hearing loss typically receive an acoustic hearing aid that amplifies received sound to compensate for the conductive hearing loss.
Sensorineural hearing loss occurs when there is damage to the inner ear or the neural pathways from the inner ear to the brain. As such, those suffering from sensorineural hearing loss are typically unable to derive suitable benefit from hearing prostheses that cause mechanical vibrations of the cochlea. In contrast, cochlear implants deliver electrical stimulation to the neural pathways in the cochlea.
Users of hearing prostheses often seek to listen to music from portable devices. Typically, electrical signal communication is established between a sound processor of the hearing prostheses and the portable device to feed the music electronically to the hearing prosthesis. That is, output from the portable device typically bypasses any microphone of the hearing prostheses.